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Three Sisters
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Expected 10 Mar 26Win a free print copy of this book!
2 days and 06:31:49
5 copies available
U.S. only
Harper and her two sisters face extreme danger and unexpected natural disasters while hiking in the Cascades of Oregon in this story of nonstop action, survival, high school science, and sibling rivalry.
Fourteen-year-old Harper Anderson is embarking on a camping trip with her family: twelve-year-old sister Ryker, a know-it-all who likes to push her buttons; sweet, eleven-year-old sister Jentry; and their dad Jordan, who is trying his best to keep the family together. The trip is to honor their recently deceased mother, whose ashes they carry with them. Fittingly, they are hiking South Sister, one of the three volcanic peaks of the mountain range called Three Sisters in central Oregon. But when the mountain suddenly erupts, their memorial hike turns into a harrowing fight for survival. With Dad injured, it’s up to Harper to get her family safely off the mountain, amid explosions, fires, glacier melt, cave-ins, acid rain, and more tests of her wits and courage.
Fourteen-year-old Harper Anderson is embarking on a camping trip with her family: twelve-year-old sister Ryker, a know-it-all who likes to push her buttons; sweet, eleven-year-old sister Jentry; and their dad Jordan, who is trying his best to keep the family together. The trip is to honor their recently deceased mother, whose ashes they carry with them. Fittingly, they are hiking South Sister, one of the three volcanic peaks of the mountain range called Three Sisters in central Oregon. But when the mountain suddenly erupts, their memorial hike turns into a harrowing fight for survival. With Dad injured, it’s up to Harper to get her family safely off the mountain, amid explosions, fires, glacier melt, cave-ins, acid rain, and more tests of her wits and courage.
- GenresFictionYoung Adult
272 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication March 10, 2026
2154 people want to read
About the author
David Macinnis Gill
29 books138 followersDavid Macinnis Gill is the author of the award-winning novels Black Hole Sun and Soul Enchilada, both from Greenwillow/Harper Collins. His short stories have appeared in several magazines, including The Crescent Review and Writer’s Forum. His critical biography of young adult author Graham Salisbury, Graham Salisbury: Island Boy, was published by Scarecrow Press. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English/creative writing and a doctorate in education, both from the University of Tennessee.
He is the Past-President of ALAN (The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents) and an Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. His non-fiction, book reviews, essays, and academic work have appeared in a variety of publications, including The English Journal, Teacher-Librarian, and many others.
David’s teaching career began in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where he was a high school teacher at Brainerd High School and briefly at the Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences. He later joined the English Department at Ohio University as an assistant professor. Currently, he is an associate professor of English education at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.
David has been a house painter, cafeteria manager, bookstore schleper, high school teacher, and college professor. He now lives on the Carolina coast with his family, plus fourteen fish, two rescued dogs--an airebeagle and a border setter--and a nocturnal marsupial.
He is the Past-President of ALAN (The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents) and an Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. His non-fiction, book reviews, essays, and academic work have appeared in a variety of publications, including The English Journal, Teacher-Librarian, and many others.
David’s teaching career began in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where he was a high school teacher at Brainerd High School and briefly at the Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences. He later joined the English Department at Ohio University as an assistant professor. Currently, he is an associate professor of English education at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.
David has been a house painter, cafeteria manager, bookstore schleper, high school teacher, and college professor. He now lives on the Carolina coast with his family, plus fourteen fish, two rescued dogs--an airebeagle and a border setter--and a nocturnal marsupial.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
Excellent survival story for young teens and upper middle grades. Just the right mix of family/character drama and action and suspense. Three sisters and their widowed father are hiking in a mountainous wilderness area-- named approximately enough, Three Sisters--when its dormant volcano starts to come to life. They are immediately thrust into many dangerous situations as they have to get themselves to safety, without any outside help. But their frequent bickering and unresolved family issues from the loss of their mother also hinder their progress. Great book to give to fans of Peak by Roland Smith, Playing With Fire by April Henry, and other survival-type books. I liked the differentiation between the 3 girls, in personality types and inherent skill sets, including one who I think displayed signs of neurodivergence in a very nice and positive way. You could easily tell them apart; their sibling jibes at each other were funny but also painfully honest and realistic. I found myself rooting for them all to make it out okay. And I learned a whole lot of information about volcanoes!
I received a digital advance copy of this book to read from Edelweiss.
I received a digital advance copy of this book to read from Edelweiss.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Harper Anderson is not happy that her father is dragging her and her sisters Jentry and Riker to the Three Sisters mountain range in Oregon to hike to the top to spread her mother's ashes. Their mother, a nurse, drowned in a flash flood trying to get home from work, and Harper has had to step in and deal with her sisters since their father is so grief stricken. The girls are constantly bickering in the car, but are glad to be at Truman's Lodge and see longtime friend Garis, who owns the lodge. They start their hike with a scuffle over who will carry their mother's ashes, and of course Harper steps up. When they stop at a lake on their way to the top, they are a little alarmed to see dead fish and smell sulfur in the air, but keep hiking. In between chapters, the reader gets to see reports from the park service about seismic activity in the area. Harper has kept her phone with her even though her father didn't want her to, but there is rarely a signal. Since the park rangers have all been furloughed, and the family wasn't able to register, you would think that they would turn around when they feel tremors, but they don't. As they are scattering their mother's ashes, there is a tremor and a landslide, and they all barely escape with multiple scrapes. Their path down is wiped out, and they have to find another way down. The girls are angry at their father that he lost the ashes, but things get even worse and the family is plunged into a dire fight for survival. There's pumice ash in the air, a bulge in the mountain that sends them to higher ground, and an injury when Jentry is kicked by an injured deer she tries to help. Harper hears a little from Garis, who is trying to get them down off the mountain, especially since there is an evacuation order. The family manages to call 911 and request a helicopter to be evacuated, but are not happy that the wait could be 6 hours, since lots of people need rescued, and there are few available resources. They finally have help sent, and shelter in a nearby cabin, but when the helicopter comes, the father tries to board it midair from the roof, and falls. He's trapped, and the girls have to amputate his thumb to free him. The 911 dispatcher says that no one else will be coming after the father's escapade, so the girls have to get him down the mountain by themselves. Will they be able to survive?
Strengths: There aren't many survival novels that deal with escaping volcanoes, although there is Barone's nonfiction Mountain of Fire, about Mount St. Helens. The details about what it would be like to be outside when there is a volcano erupting were fascinating, and I now know to include a bandana and possibly a face mask in my survival kit if I ever go hiking. I liked that the girls all had different scientific interests and knew a lot about medicine, weather, and natural phenomenon. The deer attack was a good twists on the standard bear attack in middle grade novels, and made sense. Deer are cute and wouldn't hurt people, right? I really liked Garis, and her lodge sounds like a good place to visit. Including a government shut down and furloughed park rangers made the survival aspect even more stark.
Weaknesses: The bickering that the girls did was realistic, but got a bit old, as did the description of allergies. I found it a little hard to believe that seasoned hikers would have continued after all of the warnings like dead fish and tremors, but it makes for a good story. Could definitely have done without the dead parent trope, but that is always the case for me.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who enjoyed Brorsen's Wilderness Hacks, Downing's Just Keep Walking, or Floyd's Survivor Mountain.
Harper Anderson is not happy that her father is dragging her and her sisters Jentry and Riker to the Three Sisters mountain range in Oregon to hike to the top to spread her mother's ashes. Their mother, a nurse, drowned in a flash flood trying to get home from work, and Harper has had to step in and deal with her sisters since their father is so grief stricken. The girls are constantly bickering in the car, but are glad to be at Truman's Lodge and see longtime friend Garis, who owns the lodge. They start their hike with a scuffle over who will carry their mother's ashes, and of course Harper steps up. When they stop at a lake on their way to the top, they are a little alarmed to see dead fish and smell sulfur in the air, but keep hiking. In between chapters, the reader gets to see reports from the park service about seismic activity in the area. Harper has kept her phone with her even though her father didn't want her to, but there is rarely a signal. Since the park rangers have all been furloughed, and the family wasn't able to register, you would think that they would turn around when they feel tremors, but they don't. As they are scattering their mother's ashes, there is a tremor and a landslide, and they all barely escape with multiple scrapes. Their path down is wiped out, and they have to find another way down. The girls are angry at their father that he lost the ashes, but things get even worse and the family is plunged into a dire fight for survival. There's pumice ash in the air, a bulge in the mountain that sends them to higher ground, and an injury when Jentry is kicked by an injured deer she tries to help. Harper hears a little from Garis, who is trying to get them down off the mountain, especially since there is an evacuation order. The family manages to call 911 and request a helicopter to be evacuated, but are not happy that the wait could be 6 hours, since lots of people need rescued, and there are few available resources. They finally have help sent, and shelter in a nearby cabin, but when the helicopter comes, the father tries to board it midair from the roof, and falls. He's trapped, and the girls have to amputate his thumb to free him. The 911 dispatcher says that no one else will be coming after the father's escapade, so the girls have to get him down the mountain by themselves. Will they be able to survive?
Strengths: There aren't many survival novels that deal with escaping volcanoes, although there is Barone's nonfiction Mountain of Fire, about Mount St. Helens. The details about what it would be like to be outside when there is a volcano erupting were fascinating, and I now know to include a bandana and possibly a face mask in my survival kit if I ever go hiking. I liked that the girls all had different scientific interests and knew a lot about medicine, weather, and natural phenomenon. The deer attack was a good twists on the standard bear attack in middle grade novels, and made sense. Deer are cute and wouldn't hurt people, right? I really liked Garis, and her lodge sounds like a good place to visit. Including a government shut down and furloughed park rangers made the survival aspect even more stark.
Weaknesses: The bickering that the girls did was realistic, but got a bit old, as did the description of allergies. I found it a little hard to believe that seasoned hikers would have continued after all of the warnings like dead fish and tremors, but it makes for a good story. Could definitely have done without the dead parent trope, but that is always the case for me.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who enjoyed Brorsen's Wilderness Hacks, Downing's Just Keep Walking, or Floyd's Survivor Mountain.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an audio ARC.
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book. It is a survival story about trying to escape a volcanic eruption while out hiking. This story introduces the reader to the family who have lost their mother and how their family has been affected since her passing. I liked the characterization that was built by their arguing, but the arguing did get a bit old and repetitive after a bit. Once the eruption began, the story did take off. I liked the podcast elements that were added in as well. The narrator did an excellent job with this one and was great to listen to.
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book. It is a survival story about trying to escape a volcanic eruption while out hiking. This story introduces the reader to the family who have lost their mother and how their family has been affected since her passing. I liked the characterization that was built by their arguing, but the arguing did get a bit old and repetitive after a bit. Once the eruption began, the story did take off. I liked the podcast elements that were added in as well. The narrator did an excellent job with this one and was great to listen to.
November 13, 2025
Very suspenseful, if not a little fantastical. Should be a big hit with kids.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews